Tuesday, January 3, 2017

new year, same old Cam

Man so transfers happened this week and I got a new companion! I am still in Macarthur but I am with Elder Kenworthy! He is the other zone leader in the zone so it makes doing our duties as ZL's a lot easier haha! He is from Spokane Washington and he is the man!! We have had so much fun already and we work really well together! The area is still struggling right now and we have no investigators but we are finding like crazy every day haha! We have a lot of good ideas that we are ready to try out to see if we can find more success in the area and get some people to teach!

Monday- We had pday and we just spent it at the chapel all day playing volleyball with the Samoan ward and other missionaries! After that we got to go and say bye to people for Elder Schwalger! Oh yeah and in the morning I got to Skype my wonderful family which was awesome! It was fun to catch up and actually talk to them instead of emailing haha! We got to have breakfast with the Ah Mus after I skyped too so that was great!

Tuesday- I got my new comp and we went to work! We spent the day tracting and getting stuff in order for the zone! Then we just did some ward listing and tried to drive around and see if people on the ward list still live where it says they do, or if they are interested in coming back to church haha. Pretty basic day!

Wednesday- We did tracting in the morning and a recent convert in the ward picked us up and drove us to where we were going and then we got his cell number and he got our new number, which he had been needing for awhile because he wanted to set up an appointment with us so that was a little miracle for the day! During tracting we got kissed on the cheek by on older mom lady (keep in mind our cheeks were all full of our sweat haha) then we got nerf guns shot at us through a screen door and people yelled out "that's what we think of Jehovahs witnesses around here!!" Hahaha and then just the normal people that weren't interested! After tracting we were able to see Francis and the Newlands which was really cool because its hard to catch them both home sometimes!

Thursday- We literally did finding all day haha! We did some GQing in the morning followed by some tracting and then the tracting was followed b GQing! After the GQing we got to go to the temple with some other elders to sing carols at the Christmas lights haha! No one really came so we just sang to the grass pretty much! But it was fun to get to see the temple!

Friday- We had DTM in the morning which was one of the better trainings we have had! We cleaned the chapel afterwards with the zone and then got some lunch! Then we went and did some finding at the train station! After that we introduced my comp to Bishop and also got to see Bobby and Vera! We had a good lesson with them about Hope and Faith!

Saturday- So we spent all of the day doing finding! We did tracting in the morning before lunch and then after lunch we did finding at the train station. We had to be in our flats by 6 because of new years eve so before we went in the flat we got some dinner and then also some sparkling apple cider to celebrate the new year lol.

Sunday- We got moved to church at 9 o clock for the new year. A missionary just got home from his mission in our ward so we got to hear him give his testimony and everything which was really good! After church we went and got our zone goals and stuff in order and also did a little more planning! Then we went and did some GQing until we had dinner at the Pikula's house!

Monday- I had MLC all day which was really good! Apparently there are some big changes happening worldwide in the missionary schedule and what not so we will find those out towards the end of the month! Looking forward to seeing what they are haha! When we got back from MLC we just did some GQing at the train station! We are going to try and use the members to help us and hopefully get some referrals so that we don't have to do so much finding any more haha but it's all good I like tracting and what not... kinda fun!

I was thinking about the new year and it reminded me of the story of Alma the Younger in the Book of Mormon! He spent majority of his younger life persecuting the church and drawing people away from it. Then he had a life changing experience when an angel of the Lord appeared to him and rebuked him! Alma the Younger was tormented with his past and couldn't stand the thought of standing before God.

Alma 36:17-20

17 And it came to pass that as I was thus racked with torment, while I was harrowed up by the memory of my many sins, behold, I remembered also to have heard my father prophesy unto the people concerning the coming of one Jesus Christ, a Son of God, to atone for the sins of the world.

18 Now, as my mind caught hold upon this thought, I cried within my heart: O Jesus, thou Son of God, have mercy on me, who am in the gall of bitterness, and am encircled about by the everlasting chains of death.

19 And now, behold, when I thought this, I could remember my painsno more; yea, I was harrowed up by the memory of my sins no more.

20 And oh, what joy, and what marvelous light I did behold; yea, my soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my pain!

What I am getting at is that with the new year it allows us to become better and a new person, but what really enables us to make that change and become a new person is Jesus Christ and His Atonement. I hope that we will all exercise our faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement and strive to become a new creature in Christ this year! I know He lives and that His Atonement is for everyone! Love you guys have a good week!